Perspective

Sultana's perspective is quite clear and often re-emphasized through the course of the book. Relying on her first-hand experiences as a Saudi Arabian woman, the member of a large conservative Muslim family, and a royal princess, she believes the women of Saudi Arabia (and to a larger extent, the Arab world) are oppressed, and she is using the opportunity of the autobiography to inform people about this oppression and inspire them to action. Sultana's enlightened stance often gets her into trouble with the more conservative members of her family, especially her sisters and her fundamentalist daughter Amani.

Sultana betrays ambivalence about many aspects of her life. She holds the Muslim religion in high esteem and maintains that no part of the Koran advocates any oppression against women. At the same time, there are many oppressive hadiths, or traditions, that have long been closely associated with her faith. She...